Music News - Tiki Taane Unveils Emotional Score for Aotearoa’s Historic Film Ka Whawhai Tonu – Struggle Without End
17 January 2025 - 0 Comments
Today, Tiki Taane releases an album for the score he created alongside composer Arli Liberman for Aotearoa feature film Ka Whawhai Tonu – Struggle Without End.
Presented in te reo Māori, the film tells the story of a pivotal moment in the New Zealand land wars from a Māori perspective. Directed by Michael Jonathan (Tainui, Mātaatua, Te Arawa), the film features the battle of Ōrākau from the first New Zealand land wars in the Waikato region in 1864.
For Tiki, whose ancestors fought in the 1864 battle which the film depicts, the subject matter was very personal. “We shed DNA on that battlefield. So it was a double one for me – not only making music for this incredible story and narrative but also tapping into my ancestry as well”.
Wanting to shy away from the classic sounds an audience might expect in an action-packed film based around a battle, Tiki and Arli composed a minimal score which reflected the traumatic impact on both the land and the people.
To not only enhance the film, but to accurately capture the heart of the story, their approach was to make an “invisible sonic character“. The duo experimented with taonga pūoro (traditional Māori instruments) and Tiki‘s voice, pushing the instruments to their limits and utilising them in innovative ways.
A sensational album; Ka Whawhai Tonu – Struggle Without End presents 19 sensational tracks, mostly instrumental, however including several vocalised songs from throughout the film too. Beautiful laments Tihore Mai Te Rangi and Mākurakura Te Ata are sung by some of the child characters, and a stunning harmonious rendition of a waiata karakia titled Te Ariki is sung by Tiki‘s Aunties, the ‘Taane Sisters’. Also included is the film’s heartfelt anthem Hold On To The Dream, which features ethereal vocal delivery from songbird Louis Baker; a piece of music that was created to emotionally, spiritually and sonically lift the audience from the gravity of the historical kaupapa (message) portrayed.
Whether you experienced the film or not, this album will take the listener on a deeply emotive listening journey, that will end in a strong sense of hope, dreams and liberation.
KA WHAWHAI TONU – STRUGGLE WITHOUT END opens in cinemas June 27th.
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